Inquiry into Decommissioning Oil and Gas Infrastructure

Inquiry into Decommissioning Oil and Gas Infrastructure

On 28 August 2024, the Legislative Council agreed to the following motion:

That the Environment and Planning Committee inquire into, consider and report, by June 2026, on —

(a) the scale and legal ownership structure of Victoria’s oil and gas infrastructure, including offshore wells, pipelines, high-pressure transmission and lowpressure distribution systems, and relevant projects in Commonwealth waters;

(b) the scale and nature of oil and gas infrastructure requiring decommissioning over the coming decades, including onshore works and works in Commonwealth and Victorian waters;

(c) the regulatory powers of the Victorian Government to ensure oil and gas companies deliver planned and timely infrastructure decommissioning;

(d) any actions the Victorian Government can take to ensure oil and gas companies provide sufficiently to cover decommissioning costs;

(e) opportunities for employment in decommissioning;

(f) opportunities for Traditional Owner acknowledgement, consultation and employment where oil and gas infrastructure exists on their ancestral lands and/or Sea Country;

(g) identifying current and potential leaked greenhouse gases from Victoria’s existing and retired oil and gas infrastructure, including relevant projects in Commonwealth waters and the quantity of leaks; and

(h) any actions the Victorian Government can take to cap and otherwise protect the population from leaked greenhouse gases across Victoria’s existing and retired oil and gas infrastructure.